Business, international

Asia's bounce-back

Article Abstract:

Asian economies suffered a crisis in 1997, when stock prices dropped and foreign capital fled. Asian economies had been seen as worthy of emulation, but were suddenly criticized for bad management and crony capitalism. Asoian economy were lucky in that the US could import their products since the US economy was booming atthe time of the Asian crisis. Globalization did not mean that the crisis spread, rather the Asian crisis helped keep US inflation low by making imports into the US cheaper. The Chinese economy did not collapse. There are still threats to Asian economies if their luck changes.

A bad time to be an ostrich

Article Abstract:

Globalization has been represented as irreversible, but this may not be true. Some countries have sought to resist foreign penetration, but central planning appears not to work, and technological change is a powerful force. World recession could affect globalization in 1999, and recession has already hit a number of economies such as Japan and Brazil. The European Union could move toward protectonism if unemployment rises, and the US could face a slowdown which could lead to calls for protectionism.